The speculative value of cryptocurrencies in the current stock market is well known. Bitcoin is, perhaps, the virtual currency with the most pull, and therefore, with the greatest acceptance among the general public. But beyond its use as an exchange currency to carry out purchase and sale transactions, buying with Bitcoin opens up a whole range of possibilities in terms of commercial operations , although not always within the current legislation.
And it is that despite having been closely related to the purchase of products or services through the Deep Web throughout its history, the truth is that paying with Bitcoin is something that we can carry out on any web page on the Internet that we know.
Video game
Instant Gaming, Humble Bundle, G2A … Some of the most popular video game trading platforms of 2019 support payment for services and products through Bitcoin. Far from being an uncommon practice, Steam, the best-known video game platform in history, came to admit payment with Bitcoin until 2017.
During that same year the company itself decided to suppress the payment with cryptocurrencies due to the high volatility of their value. Recall that in 2017 the value of Bitcoin reached over 16,000 euros, which caused a 'market break' between buyers and sellers.
Computer programs and operating systems
In addition to digital keys for video games and derivative services, buying computer software and programs in general with Bitcoin is more than feasible in the middle of 2019. Microsoft is perhaps the best known company: in just a few years it is possible to add a balance in the form of Bitcoin to buy any product derived from the company ( Windows 10 licenses, Microsoft Office subscriptions ...).
Besides Microsoft, there are other pages that support payment through Bitcoin, such as Gyft.
Physical stores (dental clinics, internet cafes ...)
There is a whole compendium of physical stores that accept payments through cryptocurrencies. Although its use is not very widespread in Spain and other Latin American countries, the number of stores that admit to paying with Bitcoin is increasingly high: from a computer store to a dental clinic .
To check the stores that allow paying with Bitcoin we can resort to pages such as Coinmap, where we are shown a map with all those stores compatible with payment with Bitcoin that users have previously registered. Most of these payments , however, have to be made over the Internet , either through a proprietary payment gateway or through a transaction through a virtual wallet.
General IT (computers, components ...)
Looking for computers, components or accessories related to computing? Some reputable stores have cryptocurrency-based payment methods, as is the case with Newegg , one of the most popular stores.
Outside of this we can find some local computer stores that we can find using the Coinmap website. Both in Spain and the United States and some Latin American countries.
Trips, flights, events ...
In 2018, the case of Expedia was very popular, the flight reservation website that until that year allowed the purchase of tickets through Bitcoin.
Part of the original reason has to do with the launch of Coinbase, the most popular cryptocurrency trading application today. The good news is that there are many pages that allow you to buy tickets, flights, invitations and a host of derivative services with the aforementioned virtual currency. Gran Teatro Príncipe Pío is one of them.
We leave you below with several of the most popular pages.
- Destinia
- Abitsky
- 13Tickets
- Cebupacificair
- Btctrip
- Fluege
- Nurflug
- Airbaltic
- Flypeach
- Fat
- Virtual travel agency
Products and goods (clothing, accessories, gadgets ...)
Until a few months ago Gearbest, one of the largest alternatives to Aliexpress in China, accepted payments with Bitcoin.
Although today the web no longer offers this possibility, it is possible to find different pages that allow us to buy products that range from simple fashion accessories to gadgets and computer items. Showrooomprive and Overstock are some of these stores .
Food and restaurant services
Some restaurant chains such as KFC or Subway allow payment with Bitcoin in their establishments in various locations in the United States and Europe.
Although the method has not yet been implemented in the respective web pages of the stores, it does require a virtual wallet to complete the payment. Unfortunately, this payment method is falling into disuse for the reasons we have mentioned previously .
Hacked accounts (PayPal, Amazon, Facebook ...)
We entered the murky waters of the Deep Web with one of the best-selling items on forums and second-hand markets. We refer to the hacked accounts of services such as PayPal or Facebook.
These types of accounts are often sold for as little as 5 euros at change . Some hackers offer the possibility of obtaining a specific account, and many others claim to have real bank accounts. Beyond the illegality of this type of practice, the truth is that these accounts are usually suspended shortly after their purchase.
Weapons and drugs
We cannot ignore two of the best-selling products on the Deep Web. The famous Netflix series How to sell drugs online (at full speed) exposed this type of practice earlier this year. The story described in the series, in fact, is based on the true story of Maximilian S., one of the most recognized drug traffickers in Germany who between 2013 and 2015 managed to make millions of euros with the illegal sale of drugs through the Dark Web.
Organs and human lives
Unfortunately the largest entry point for the black market for human life and organs is on the Dark Web. Although various government agencies have intervened in several of the best-known points of sale to trade with this type of 'articles', the truth is that today they are still being disseminated through forums and private rooms .
Today it is even possible to carry out this type of transaction through Instagram, as we already saw in the article that we just linked. We will not go into details for obvious reasons.